Teen Drivers Easily Distracted While Driving: Study

Teens begin as careful car drivers but slowly develop multi-tasking habit, which result in increased risk of crashes, a latest study by Virginia Tech Transportation Institute finds.

Researchers found that the teen drivers begin multi-tasking such as dialing cell phones, eating, and talking to passengers, over a period of time. This leads to either crashes or near-crash incidents.

"Novice drivers are more likely to engage in high-risk secondary tasks more frequently over time as they became more comfortable with driving," Charlie Klauer, group leader for teen risk and injury prevention at the transportation institute's Center for Vulnerable Road User Safety, said in a press release.

"The increasingly high rates of secondary task engagement among newly licensed novice drivers in our study are worrisome as this appears to be an important contributing factor to crashes or near-crashes," the study's first author said.

Citing statistics from traffic studies site, the researchers noted that drivers aged between 15 and 20 comprise 6.4 percent of all motorists on the road. Despite this, they account for 11.4 percent of fatalities and 14 percent of police-reported crashes resulting in injuries.

The researchers noted that warnings have been issued for the teens using their cell phones or other handheld electronic devices while driving. Even a slightest distraction could lead to accidents, the authors wrote.

For the study, the researchers studied the results of one year, 100-car study with drivers aged between 18 and 72 years with an average of 20 years' experience. They compared the results with another 18-month study of 42 teens who had drivers' licenses for less than three weeks when the study began.

The research team found that possible fatal distractions for new drivers- versus experienced motorists- included usage of a cell phone to dial or text, reaching away from the steering wheel, looking at something alongside the road, and eating.

Klauer stressed that any other task while driving that takes away novice driver's attention could increase the accident risk. "In previous studies we found that crash or near-crash rates among the novice drivers were nearly four times higher than for experienced drivers," she said. "Therefore, it should not be surprising that secondary task engagement contributes to this heightened risk among novice drivers."

The study is published in the New England Journal of Medicine.